Disney today sued the Federal Communications Commission and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in a lawsuit that aims to stop what it called a "campaign of censorship" waged by the Trump administration against ABC.

Disney, ABC, and the eight broadcast stations they own filed a complaint in US District Court for the District of Columbia. They also submitted a motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that would halt the FCC proceeding in which Carr is threatening to deny renewals of broadcast licenses held by ABC stations.

The lawsuit accused the FCC of violating the First Amendment by retaliating against the company's protected expression. "Again and again, the Administration has attacked ABC’s speech—the stories its journalists report and the viewpoints its network programs air," the lawsuit said. "Over time, those attacks have escalated into express demands that ABC be stripped of its broadcast licenses because of its speech."

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Conservatives and liberals lined up in opposition to the Federal Communications Commission's attempt to punish ABC for speech that President Trump dislikes.

Liberal advocacy groups urged FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to end his attacks on ABC, and conservative groups warned Carr not to set a precedent that would harm conservatives in future administrations. Former FCC chairs and commissioners from prior Republican and Democratic administrations also joined in opposition to what they call Carr's "campaign to censor disfavored speech and advance the president’s personal interest."

The FCC recently ordered ABC to file early license-renewal applications for the eight TV stations it owns and operates. A petition to deny ABC's license renewals was then submitted by the Center for American Rights, a conservative group whose previous petitions factored heavily into Carr's "news distortion" investigations into broadcasters accused of bias against Republicans and Trump. Another petition to deny was filed by the conservative Media Research Center.

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